NVIDIA posts $58.3B profit

Nvidia reported record quarterly profit and revenue on May 20, extending the run of results that investors have treated as a gauge of artificial-intelligence spending across the technology industry. The chip designer said profit for its most recent quarter rose 211% from a year earlier to $58.3 billion, while revenue climbed 85% to $81.6 billion. Nvidia also forecast second-quarter revenue above Wall Street expectations and authorized an additional $80 billion in share repurchases. The figures underscored how heavily cloud companies and other customers are still spending on AI infrastructure, even as investors press the company on how long that pace can last. ### How big was the quarter, exactly? Nvidia said first-quarter revenue reached $81.6 billion for the period ended April 26, 2026, up 20% from the prior quarter and 85% from a year earlier. Net income rose to $58.3 billion from $18.8 billion a year earlier, according to the company’s earnings release. The data center business remained the main driver. Nvidia said data center revenue was $75.2 billion, up 92% from a year earlier, reflecting continued demand for AI chips and systems used by cloud providers and large technology companies. ### What did Jensen Huang tell investors about demand? Chief Executive Jensen Huang told investors that Nvidia’s customer base is broadening and that new products should help sustain growth. Reuters reported that Huang said new data-center chips and a wider set of buyers would help the company exceed its previously forecast $1 trillion in sales for its flagship AI chips. The New York Times reported that Nvidia said demand from other large technology companies remained strong enough to drive the 211% jump in quarterly profit. That has kept Nvidia at the center of investor attention each earnings season, because its results are widely watched as a readout on broader AI capital spending. ### What was new in the outlook and cash return plan? Nvidia forecast second-quarter revenue of $91 billion, plus or minus 2%, according to Reuters, topping Wall Street expectations of $86.84 billion compiled by LSEG. The company also announced an additional $80 billion share repurchase authorization. Nvidia said separately that it would raise its quarterly cash dividend to $0.25 per share from $0.01 per share. The combination of the buyback, higher dividend and above-consensus revenue outlook gave investors two distinct signals at once: continued spending on growth and a larger return of cash to shareholders. ### Why did the market reaction look mixed? Shares rose about 1.3% in extended trading immediately after the results, Reuters reported, though other post-earnings trading snapshots later showed the stock slipping. Reuters said the decline in some after-hours trading suggested some investors were weighing tougher competition even after the company beat expectations and lifted its outlook. Asian stocks moved higher on Thursday after the earnings release, according to market coverage cited in the briefing. The move reflected how closely global markets now track Nvidia’s results as a proxy for demand in AI hardware, semiconductors and cloud infrastructure. ### What are investors watching next? The second quarter is the next test. Nvidia’s forecast of $91 billion in revenue for the current quarter sets the benchmark investors will measure against when the company reports again after the quarter ending in late July 2026. The company’s next update is also likely to focus on the newer data-center products Huang cited on the earnings call, as well as whether buybacks, dividends and continued capital spending can satisfy investors who now want both growth and larger cash returns.